Brake for railway-trucks and other vehicles.



No. 834,796. l y PATRNTRD 00T. 30,1906.

f J. GOULDIR.

RRAKR PoR RAILWAY TRUCKS AND OTHER VRHIGLRS.

APPLICATION FILED HAB..14,1906.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIOE.

JOSEPH GOULDIE, OF BRAYTON, ENGLAND.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 30, 1906.

Application filed March 14, 1906. Serial No. 305,974.

.To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH GoULDin, gentleman, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at The Gill, Brayton, in the county of Cumberland, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Brakes for Railway-Trucks and other Vehicles, of which the following is a specification.

In the ordinary brake mechanism for railway-wagons the brakes are applied by pressing on a lever which turns a rocking shaft connected by links with vthe brake-blocks..

In order to keep the brakes on, it is necessary to maintain the pressure on the brake-handle or otherwise to secure it in the position to which it has to be moved.

The present invention consists in a modification of such mechanism in which by dispensing with the linkage between the rocking shaftand the brake-blocks'and substituting suitably-shaped cams or inclined lanes,

`preferably formed on the edge of a isk secured to the rocking shaft, which coperate with tappet-rods pivotally connected with the brake-blocks and guided to move longitudinally in such a line with respect to the rocking-shaft axis, that when the rocking shaft is turned by suitable mechanism to apply the brakes by the'thrust transmitted to the tappet-rods by the cams any j olting or other force which tends to lift the brake-blocks off the wheels producesa couple acting on the rocking shaft and tending 'to turn it still farther'in the direction for a lying the brakes. In order that the brake- Ilocks may remain in a definite position and maintain a definite ressure on the wheels when the actuating- Bandle is released, the cam-surface is preferably stepped or serrated, so as to constitute a graded series of inclined planes separated by humps or projections, whereby, as hereinafter described, the brakes are rendered self-locking in any of the definite positions corresponding to the respective serrations. Further, the ressure on the wheels may be varied manuaily within limits for any one of these positions by slightly raising or lowering the brake-handle, and thereby rocking the shaft slightly toward the off or on direction.

In the preferred construction in order that the brakes may be applied indifferently by handles at opposite sides and ends of the truck one of the handles is secured directly to the rocking shaft and the other'to an intermediate shaft suitably linked With the rocking shaft. The handles being made to spring outward when released from .their rests or crutches, it will be obvious that when both are crutched the movement imparted to the rocking shaft when one handle is raised clear of the rest'will also raise the other handle, whichthen springs outward clear of the rest and is free to be moved downward by the movement of the rocking shaft 'when the brakes are a plied. This arrangement of handles may e duplicated if an operating-handle is required at each corner of the wagon, or when only two handles are required on opposite sides, but at the same end of the wagon, both may be fixed directly to the rocking shaft.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation, and Fig. 2 a part sectional plan With arts broken away, of a wagon fitted with t e improved brake mechanism.

The brake-blocks a are pivotally suspended from the frame in the usual manner and have pivotally attached to them brake or tappet rods b, preferably adjustable in length, which are arranged to be moved longitudinally in guides c', formed in the bracket c, which supports the transverse rocking shaft d. The tappet ends ofthe rods babut on the edge of a disk e, secured to the rocking shaft, which disk may be rotated through a small angle either by means of the handle f, secured directly to the rocking shaft on one side of the Wagon, or by the handle f on the other side of the wagon through the medium of a lever or finger g, secured to an intermediate rocking shaft h, which is journaled in the bracket h and to which the handle f is also fixed. The finger g engages in a recess or pocket i on the upper half of the disk, the engaging surfaces being rounded to form a knuckle-j oint.

The edge of the disk is cut away on opposite sides at y' 7c to form at each side an inclined surface or cam or preferably a series of such with which the tappet-shaped ends of the brake-rods b cooperate. The cams are cut in such manner that when the brakehandles are in the oif position the brake-.-

'ity simply. As the disk e is turned in the on direction the inclined surfaces of the cams TOO thrust the brake-rods outward, and thus apply the brakes.

The brake-rods l) are arranged with their longitudinal axes directed the one slightly above and the other slightly below the axis of the rocking shaft, so that any force tending to lease the brake-blocks-such as, for example, might be caused by the jolting of the truck-thereby applies a turning moment to the disk e, which tends to turn still farther in the on direction, and consequently when the brakes are applied they will remain on without any loc ring of the brake-handles until they are released by raising the handles. In order, however, to obviate an increase of brake-pressure by the action of any external force, either constant or intermittent, and in order to have positions of definitely-graded pressure, the cam-surfaces are stepped or serrated, as shown, to form a series of inclined-surfaces which are separated by slight projections or humps k, the resistance offered in overriding these humps being sufficient to prevent the brake-rods being jumped accidentally from one step of the series to another. It will be obvious that while the disk will thus assume and retain when the brake-handle is released a substann tially definite position for each of these steps and will consequently cause a substantially definite pressure of the brake-blocks this pressure may be varied within limits for each step by raising or lowering the brake-handle slightly, and thereby allowing the tappet end of the brake-rod to ride down the incline or forcing it up the incline toward the next hump.

For the purpose of compensating for wear of the brake-blocks or coperating parts the rods b are preferably made adjustable in length, as by making them, as shown, in two parts one screwing into the other and clamping the parts by lock-nuts.

It will be obvious that instead of hanging the brake-blocks by links they may be supported to move to and fro translationally.

I claiml. In brake mechanism for railway-trucks and other vehicles, applying the braking pressure through a rod having a tappet end which abuts on the face-cam and the axis of which is directed slightly on one side of the rocking-shaft axis, substantially as described.

2. In brake mechanism for railway-trucks and other vehicles, a stepped or serrated cani having a series of inclined. surfaces separated by slight humps or projections substantially as described.

3. In brake mechanism for railway-trucks and other vehicles, a disk fixed on the rocking shaft having its edge formed at two opposite points as a stepped arm or series of inclined surfaces separated-by slight humps or projections which coperate with the tappct ends of rods attached to the brake-blocks and movable in guides along lines which pass respectively above and below the axis of the rocking shaft, substantially as described.

4. In apparatus of the character described, means for actuating the rocking shaft from opposite sides and ends of the vehicle co1nprising a brake lever or handle secured to the rocking shaft on the one side of the vehicle and a second handle on the other side secured to a second transverse shaft carrying a fixed lever or finger which engages with the disk on the main rocking shaft, the said levers or handles being made to spring outward when raised from their rests or crutches, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my naine to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOSEPH GOULDIE.

Witnesses:

JOHN GRAHAM, J. A. MoRToN. 

